Reptiles are among the most common animals found in the rainforest. | |
Reptiles include four main groups: crocodiles and alligators (23 species), the unusual tuataras from New Zealand (2 species), snakes (about 3,000 species) and lizards (about 4,000 species), and turtles and tortoises (about 300 species). | |
Like frogs, reptiles are cold-blooded, meaning they generally rely on external sources of heat, rather than generating their own body heat. |
Many of the world's Crocodilia species -- including alligators, crocodiles, caimans, and gharials -- live in the tropics. Every major rainforest region has at least one type of Crocodilia. These range in size from the dwarf crocodile of Central Africa to the massive, and very dangerous, saltwater crocodile of Australia and New Guinea. | |
Caiman crossing a road in the Brazilian Pantanal | |
Black caiman in the Pantanal |
American Crocodiles in the Tarcoles river in Costa Rica | |
Baby caiman in Costa Rica | |
Lizards are the most commonly seen reptiles in the rainforest. The largest lizards are monitor lizards of the old world, which include the Komodo Dragon from Indonesia. |
The Komodo dragon is the world's largest lizard | |
Mertens' Water Monitor (Varanus mertensi) | |
Malayan water monitor in Laos |
Monitor lizard (Varanus salvator) in Malaysia | |
The Green Basilisk is sometimes called the 'Jesus Christ Lizard' because it can run across water | |
Rainbow Amevia lizard in Honduras |
Blue-headed tree agama in Uganda | |
Chameleons are among the world's most spectacular reptiles, capable of changing to a wide range of colors depending on their surroundings and emotional state. Roughly half the planet's chameleon species are found in Madagascar. | |
Turquoise Parson's chameleon in Madagascar |
Striped juvenile Parson's chameleon in Madagascar | |
Short-nosed Chameleon (Calumma gastrotaenia) in Madagascar | |
Female Parson's chameleon with green coloring and a yellow eye |
Yellow and orange Parson's chameleon in Madagascar | |
Blue-green Parson's chameleon in Madagascar | |
Petter's Chameleon in Montagne d'Ambre, Madagascar. |
Blue, green, orange, white, and brown Calumma crypticum chameleon in Ranomafana, Madagascar | |
Peyrieras' leaf chameleon (Brookesia peyrierasi) | |
Brown leaf chameleon (Brookesia superciliaris) |
Peyrieras' leaf chameleon (Brookesia peyrierasi) | |
Male panther chameleon with breeding coloration | |
Panther chameleon with 'Christmas' coloration in Maroantsetra, Madagascar |
Male panther (Furcifer pardalis) chameleon in Madagascar | |
Male panther chameleon (Furcifer pardalis) on a man's arm | |
Male panther chameleon in Madagascar |
Male panther chameleon in Madagascar | |
Male panther chameleon in Madagascar | |
Male Calumma globifer chameleon in Madagascar |
Forest dragon with blue eyes in Indonesian Borneo | |
Baby forest dragon in Indonesian Borneo | |
Tokay Gecko (Gekko gecko) in Bali |
Klemmer's Yellow-headed Day Gecko (Phelsuma klemmeri) from Madagascar | |
Tanzania blue gecko (Lygodactylus williamsi) | |
Gecko in Costa Rica |
Gecko lizard species with black markings in Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo | |
Shadow of a day gecko on a sunlit leaf in Madagascar | |
Koch's day gecko (Phelsuma madagascariensis kochi) in Madagascar |
Phelsuma madagascariensis kochi day gecko | |
Uroplatus phantasticus leaf-tailed gecko in Madagascar | |
Satanic Leaf-tail Gecko (Uroplatus phantasticus) in Madagascar |
Giant Leaftailed Gecko (Uroplatus fimbriatus) in Madagascar | |
Uroplatus fimbriatus gecko on Nosy Mangabe | |
Giant leaf-tail gecko in Madagascar |
Uroplatus fimbriatus leaf-tail gecko on Nosy Mangabe | |
Giant leaf-tail gecko (Uroplatus fimbriatus) in Madagascar | |
Giant flat-tail gecko (Uroplatus fimbriatus) in Madagascar |
Giant leaf-tailed gecko (Uroplatus fimbriatus) in Madagascar | |
Giant leaftailed gecko (Uroplatus fimbriatus) in Madagascar | |
Giant flattail gecko in Madagascar |
Juvenile green iguana (Iguana iguana) in Colombia | |
Black iguana (Ctenosaura similis) in Panama | |
Male Iguana in Costa Rica's Osa Peninsula |
Green iguana (Iguana iguana) | |
The Fijian iguana is critically endangered | |
Red-Eyed Bush Crocodile Skink (Tribolonotus gracilis) from New Guinea |
False coral snake in Colombia | |
Madagascar leaf-nosed snake | |
Salmon-bellied Snake (Mastigodryas melanolomus) in Costa Rica |
Asian Vine Snake in South Kalimantan, Indonesia Borneo | |
Gmelin's Bronzeback snake (Dendrelaphis pictus) eating a frog in Tree snake in Taman Negara National Park, Malaysia | |
Tree snake in Taman Negara National Park, Malaysia |
Oriental Vine Snake (Ahaetulla prasina) in Sulawesi, Indonesia | |
Boa constrictor in Belize | |
The Anaconda is one of the world's largest snakes. |
Common chunk headed snake (Imantodes cenchoa) in Costa Rica | |
Emerald boa (Corallus caninus) from the Amazon rainforest | |
Boa constrictor in Bocas del Toro, Panama |
Green tree python from Southeast Asia | |
Green tree python (Morelia viridis) from Southeast Asia | |
Sumatran freshwater turtle |
